Electric Vehicles etc

Asininedrivel

caviar connoisseur
TLDR Tesla's are nice cars with inconsistent build quality, expensive insurance and a closed garden service and repair model.
I have no issue with Tesla, they've done the disruptor thing well and have developed enormous brand recognition and a fanatical fan base in basically no time at all. But now the giants are limbering up they're going to produce better EVs - particularly makers like Porsche. It's just simple economies of scale and experience in the industry. The same way you'd buy a Trek for a first bike rather than chancing some AliExpress build.
 

Oddjob

Merry fucking Xmas to you assholes
I have no issue with Tesla, they've done the disruptor thing well and have developed enormous brand recognition and a fanatical fan base in basically no time at all. But now the giants are limbering up they're going to produce better EVs - particularly makers like Porsche. It's just simple economies of scale and experience in the industry. The same way you'd buy a Trek for a first bike rather than chancing some AliExpress build.
So is Porsche the Nicolai of the car world or more like Unno?


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dancaseyimages

Mountain bike pornographer
Depends which model - S and X are all aloominum so not many body shops are keen on those. Same for an A8 or any other all aloominum body car.

Model 3 is steel and fairly conventional.
Canberra still doesn't have an approved panel repair centre for Tesla, Sydney has lots so I'm assuming that's where the car goes if its deemed to be repairable :'( I was reading up on it and only certain tools/branding to be certified to be used etc. on the repair.

I dont know how the guys in Canberra that make a 'semi living' off the repairable write off scene are going to go with all these barriers in place.

I think the greatest thing Tesla do is if your looking at a trade then the Mechanic and Auto electrician dual apprenticeship fast tracked is a great idea. I did my 3.5 years in just a mechanical apprenticeship so to have both done at the same time would be great.
The two young guys in Canberra were very happy about getting into the program when we did our test drive. Cool career with lots of future prospects.

I do also like that 'The leader', Elon is pretty funny on his socials and also believes that we live in a simulation still to this day.
 

beeb

Dr. Beebenson, PhD HA, ST, Offset (hons)
I think the greatest thing Tesla do is if your looking at a trade then the Mechanic and Auto electrician dual apprenticeship fast tracked is a great idea. I did my 3.5 years in just a mechanical apprenticeship so to have both done at the same time would be great.
It's so frustrating that they're still separate trades. So much knowledge overlap in the automotive products these days. It really should be dual-trade as standard. They're only just starting to get high voltage certification/training sorted now in a lot of places too...
 

goobags

Likes Dirt
This is insane! No wonder the insurance for Tesla's is stratospheric. The CO cost of writing off otherwise driveable cars is stupid as well.

Porsche has 3 approved smash repairers in Sydney and 1 in Canberra plus myriad independent repairers and restorers across the state. Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has even more. And I imagine it would be the same situation for most of the European brands.

The big question mark in my mind is repairs. Porsche, JLR and BMW have a lot of independent workshops with ancillary support from wreckers, auto electricians etc. My independent Land Rover workshop doesn't currently do the hybrid models but he reckons that will change soon. I really like my workshop and they did a really good job and this will have a big impact on the next car I buy.

I reckon in the next 10 years there will be a wholesale change in the servicing industry. There's already a few workshops near me that specialise in EVs but that's likely to increase very quickly. And that will include battery refurbishment and recycling specialists.

In the US there are independent Tesla workshops now but they essentially operate in a grey zone without factory support. I'm not sure if that model will take off in a smaller market like Australia.

TLDR Tesla's are nice cars with inconsistent build quality, expensive insurance and a closed garden service and repair model.

The Dinosaurs are bringing out ev's. Some will be better, some will be worse than Tesla's cars. But they have the repair and support infrastructure in place to make living with their cars a lot easier.

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I’m biased, have a Model 3 Standard Range Plus in the garage, however:

Insurance cost isn’t that insane, was around $200 more per year than my 2014 Golf GTi through the same insurer. I did opt in for for unlimited car hire which was a further cost but hopefully protects against long lead time repairs.

Porsche/JLR don’t offer a $65k car so hard to compare but I’m certain all their ICE repairers won’t jump straight into their EV repairs. They will have designated workshops that are tooled and trained up.

There will be a significant shift in after sales repair/servicing as the serving basically disappears. Can’t charge $135/hr for the apprentice to change oil and top up wiper fluids, then charge a premium per litre of oil and add environmental disposal costs.

Even if you can repair things doesn’t always mean they get fixed. A bloke at work has a VF commodore that has a recurring brake light issue where the brake lights comes on and stay on. Been at various shops trying to fix, goes away for a while then comes back. Commodores are up there with the most common and definitely not the most complex to fix.

Build quality has improvised significantly since moving to China. No one ever said American built cars were good quality. Brand is damaged by that and it won’t disappear from the internet for a long time.

I’m all for ‘open source’ but if they do it like Apple you end up with an excellent, premium product. Yes I have an iPhone and iMac but nothing else Apple.


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Scotty T

Walks the walk
At the end of the day it's a car. I'll buy my next car (probably a Taycan Cross or Defender 130 ev) based on it's qualities not some desire to punish some corporate entity that doesn't give a shit.
Fair enough. VW gave me back money for diesel gate. I would just rather throw my support behind an all electric company, there will be more of those.

Thanks for the links. We're a couple of years off being able to afford this so hopefully things improve.

We did over 600 k's on our trip. As it happened we got turned around by a flooded causeway on the way to the coast and had to take a long detour and stop at a fast charger. The back roads were completely trashed anyway with pot holes everywhere so had I known that I would have planned the longer main road route, without the detour adding 90km we would have still done it in one go.

We took it all through Booderee Nat Park including about 18k of dirt road. We filled it at our Airbnb overnight with an extension run from their garage.

We took the even longer tourist drive home. Huskisson > Callala Bay, south of Berry went to a winery on the way home and had lunch while it supercharged from 180km to full,

We went up the climb to Fitzroy Falls following a plumber who was an obvious local doing about 2-3x the posted speed limit on the hairpin corners in an obviously powerful new Guy-lux style ute, i had never driven it bit followed his lines and chewed a bit of juice.

Just after Fitzroy Falls (what a lovely place) Elon's evil AI worked out we should stay under 115km/h to reach home. That also would mean not getting to the speed limit and between speed limits in seconds and milliseconds. Luckily we were passing Goulburn and we could top up. The Supercharger chucked a hunge k on in the time it took my wife to go to the loo and buy some local grog from the visitor centre, she lives a good visitor centre.

Got home and plugged into the wall socket, it will be 100% by the time I need to take my wife to work. She's 100% on board to get one when we can. It can take a tow bar too.
 

Haakon

Keeps on digging
Fair enough. VW gave me back money for diesel gate. I would just rather throw my support behind an all electric company, there will be more of those.

Thanks for the links. We're a couple of years off being able to afford this so hopefully things improve.

We did over 600 k's on our trip. As it happened we got turned around by a flooded causeway on the way to the coast and had to take a long detour and stop at a fast charger. The back roads were completely trashed anyway with pot holes everywhere so had I known that I would have planned the longer main road route, without the detour adding 90km we would have still done it in one go.

We took it all through Booderee Nat Park including about 18k of dirt road. We filled it at our Airbnb overnight with an extension run from their garage.

We took the even longer tourist drive home. Huskisson > Callala Bay, south of Berry went to a winery on the way home and had lunch while it supercharged from 180km to full,

We went up the climb to Fitzroy Falls following a plumber who was an obvious local doing about 2-3x the posted speed limit on the hairpin corners in an obviously powerful new Guy-lux style ute, i had never driven it bit followed his lines and chewed a bit of juice.

Just after Fitzroy Falls (what a lovely place) Elon's evil AI worked out we should stay under 115km/h to reach home. That also would mean not getting to the speed limit and between speed limits in seconds and milliseconds. Luckily we were passing Goulburn and we could top up. The Supercharger chucked a hunge k on in the time it took my wife to go to the loo and buy some local grog from the visitor centre, she lives a good visitor centre.

Got home and plugged into the wall socket, it will be 100% by the time I need to take my wife to work. She's 100% on board to get one when we can. It can take a tow bar too.
I keep having daydreams of the Alfa being written off on the new for old policy we have - and topping it up $20K for a Model 3…

Sigh.
 

Scotty T

Walks the walk
I’m all for ‘open source’ but if they do it like Apple you end up with an excellent, premium product. Yes I have an iPhone and iMac but nothing else Apple.
I don't. Mainly because I'm used to the other platforms. It's pretty fucking hard to crash a Tesla too from my experience driving it unless you weren't concentrating or being a total fuckwit, or the unavoidable unlucky like a big roo or rock fall. If someone crashes into you you'll get a hire car through your insurance, but I'd totally add it if I got one.

Was without a car for 6 weeks because of the shitty sensors on the Golf not beeping at a low obstacle I couldn't see That took it the radiator but barely damaged the bumper. Even if the far superior sensors on the Tesla somehow failed to warn me, the tiny hit probably would have left me with a drivable car. Fuck radiators right in the front of the car because shit gets too hot not to ventilated them.
 

tubby74

Likes Bikes and Dirt
just booked in to go test the model 3 this weekend. was annoyed to find that the least powerful version is still p plate banned in NSW so that might push us back to burning dinosaurs for the next car, oldest kid will be getting his learners in a year
 

Scotty T

Walks the walk
just booked in to go test the model 3 this weekend. was annoyed to find that the least powerful version is still p plate banned in NSW so that might push us back to burning dinosaurs for the next car, oldest kid will be getting his learners in a year
I didn't know that but not surprised. It launches from any speed with a throttle response that could get an inexperienced driver in trouble quickly.
 

downunderdallas

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Insurance cost isn’t that insane, was around $200 more per year than my 2014 Golf GTi through the same insurer. I did opt in for for unlimited car hire which was a further cost but hopefully protects against long lead time repairs.
Yes same here about $750 hardly seems insane to me.
 

dancaseyimages

Mountain bike pornographer
just booked in to go test the model 3 this weekend. was annoyed to find that the least powerful version is still p plate banned in NSW so that might push us back to burning dinosaurs for the next car, oldest kid will be getting his learners in a year
Your next option would be the path of many, which is to insure and rego in your name and add the p plater bit on, if your child drives it say 10% of the time it should be fine.
Worked for alot of the tradies I used to work with for V8 utes, WRX's etc. under the NSW p plate laws.
 

Scotty T

Walks the walk
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